South to Nevada

Like so often when we are travelling it feels as if we’ve been on the road a lot longer than what’s actually the case. By now we have reached Pioche, Nevada, and Challis, where we had breakfast only yesterday morning, seems like a place from the distant past.

Dramatic Idaho sky

We had decided to take Highway 93 all the way to where it meets Interstate 15 close to Las Vegas: the slower pace and much quieter traffic suited us well, and of course it’s always nice to travel a ‘scenic route’. We would pass Craters of the Moon National Monument on the way to Twin Falls, which sounded like a very interesting place, and a good one to interrupt our travel and go for a walk to stretch our legs a little. The closer we got, however, the more clear it became that what made it fascinating was likely not visible during this particular visit, and really: all the interesting lava formations were covered with half a metre or more of snow. We stopped anyway, because the short videos put on by the interpretive centres are always good to watch. Thus we got an idea, at least, what we would have been able to see under more favourable conditions, the different types of lava formations and how they came to be, plus the flora and fauna of the area. As always, I spent some time browsing the book section, checking out plant and bird guides and books about the history and peoples of the area, but also with my grandchildren in mind. And then, of course, there were all the animal puppet friends of 'Dolores', the raven puppet I bought last year at Sequoia National Monument. Who could resist the black bear cub or porcupine puppets, not to mention the owl or brown bat? But we had to move on, of course, if we wanted to reach Wells, Nevada before nightfall. 

We stopped briefly in Twin Falls to fuel up and buy some groceries and soon were on our way again. Here, it felt like spring: no more snow, the car thermometer showed +10 Celsius, and we thought we even detected a hint of green in the ditches already. This was not going to last, unfortunately, and by the time we reached Wells it was only +5. I was surprised at the magnificent landscape all the way south through this part of Nevada, the snow-capped mountains in the distance a dramatic backdrop against the deep blue sky, so that the sere plains close by seemed much less forbidding because of it. Jackpot was the first place we passed through in Nevada, consisting of a handful of casinos, restaurants, and fuel stations. I expected Wells to be different, having some character, maybe, for whatever reason. Somehow the name seemed to suggest it. But whatever it might have had to offer in the past, what is left of the original town feels rather desolate. Many houses and businesses along wide main street are boarded up and in bad disrepair, and while there had been several motels at one time most of them were closed now. We did find a nice, cozy, warm room at the ‘Sharon Motel’, and were happy to have arrived after the long drive. The most distinguishing feature of modern-day Wells is that it is at the crossroads of two major highways, the one we were travelling on leading to Las Vegas, and the east-west connection from Salt Lake City to Reno.